MediaSport Podcast Series

Robert McLeman from Wilfred Laurier University in Canada speaks to the series about RinkWatch, a fascinating citizen science research initiative that traces the impacts of climate change on outdoor ice rinks and ponds in North America. We discuss the community and tech that makes RinkWatch possible, the media and public responses to its findings, and future scenarios for ice skating in a warming climate.

This episode features Markus Stauff from the University of Amsterdam. He outlines the complex relationship between television, technology, mediation and sport across time. We discuss datafication, forensic fandom and sports photography, before concluding with some reflections on the politics of open access publishing.

Jim Cherrington and Jack Black from Sheffield Hallam University in the UK join the Series to discuss their new edited collection, 'Sport and Physical Activity in Catastrophic Environments'. We discuss the role of sport around the world in rebuilding after catastrophe, the relationship between nature and technology, and mountain biking. The weird and eerie also feature.  (Note: This podcast uses sound from freesound: "Bike ride" by crooner (https://freesound.org/s/42539/) licensed under CC0 1.0.)

Episode 41 features a conversation with Jessica Murfree from Texas A&M University in the United States. Jessica shares her insights about climate injustice, extreme weather and the benefits of adopting an intersectional perspective on the environment. We also discuss the attitudes of fans towards climate change and importance of research impact.

We're joined for Episode 40 by Dan Henhawk from the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada. Speaking as a proud Kanien’keha:ka and Haudenosaunee man, Dan shares his insights about the value of Critical Indigenous Studies and the need to rethink notions of sustainability grounded in colonialist norms and values. We also discuss race, racism and the fascinating history of lacrosse.

Sport and climate change leader Madeleine Orr speaks about slippery slopes at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, the role of sport at the COP26 conference in Glasgow, and the origins of the Sport Ecology Group. Read about Maddy’s research and activities on her website (https://www.madeleineorr.com/), follow her on Twitter @maddyjorr, and hear her on the Climate Champions Podcast (https://www.madeleineorr.com/podcast).

A Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics special episode. I'm joined by scholar-activist and leading Olympics expert, Jules Boykoff, to review recent events in Tokyo. We discuss the staging of the Games in the middle of a public health emergency that saw celebration capitalism and disaster capitalism collide. Jules also offers his insights on greenwashing, anti-Olympic activism, and the announcement of Brisbane as the latest host of the Games in 2032. Further information about Jules' work is available via www.julesboykoff.org and his Twitter profile @JulesBoykoff.

This episode covers the serious issue of suicide in elite sport. We're joined by Holly Thorpe to discuss her recent article in The Conversation, 'The price of gold — what high-performance sport in NZ must learn from the Olivia Podmore tragedy'. Holly highlights the costs of elite sport culture, mental health, and the urgent need for institutional change to better protect the well-being of athletes. She makes the case that sociological critique can only get us so far when faced by a tragedy such as this one. Next steps include ongoing dialogue with other disciplines, members of the elite sport community, and the wider public. We offer our sincere condolences to the Podmore family, her friends, team-mates, coaches and others who knew Olivia, as well anyone at all who has been impacted by news of her death. If this discussion raises issues for you, or if you’re concerned about anyone you know, please contact Lifeline in Australia or Aotearoa/New Zealand, or their equivalents around the world depending on where you are listening.

Recorded in lockdown via Zoom, Episode 36 examines human-animal relations, sport and physical activity. Melanie Sartore-Baldwin explains why our social relationships with animals matter and the intricacies of speciesism and animal-standpoint theory. We also discuss the relationship between sports mascots and endangered species, horses and dogs in sport, and food. Get vaccinated everyone!

We’re back! This episode features Rebecca Olive and Belinda Wheaton discussing their new special issue(s) of the Journal of Sport and Social Issues – ‘Understanding Blue Spaces: Sports, Bodies, Wellbeing, and the Sea’. In a wide-ranging discussion, they share their insights about surfing, pollution, waka ama paddling, and the value of transnational research perspectives. Listeners should check out the special issue(s) and the ‘Moving Oceans’ project website.

Panel presentation from the 70th Annual International Communication Association (ICA) Conference (May 2020). Also available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRoTTRUJplQ&feature=youtu.be This panel of scholars from Australia and New Zealand uses the sport-nation-region nexus to identify the contested meanings and politics of sport and media in Oceania, and discusses why sporting cultures and media work, in different ways, to connect, include and exclude citizens in this part of the world. Features David Rowe (Western Sydney University), Toni Bruce (University of Auckland), Bevan Erueti (Massey University), Holly Thorpe and Nida Ahmad (University of Waikato) and Brett Hutchins (Monash University).

Recorded in the wonderful city of Madrid, this episode features sports media and journalism scholar, José Luis Rojas Torrijos. We discuss ‘footballisation’ and sports media scholarship in Spain and among Spanish language researchers more broadly. Our conversation also covers ethics and accountability in journalism, the blurring of news and entertainment, and the gamification of sports news.

This episode returns to the enduring relationship between sport, politics and media. It features Michael J. Socolow, a media historian and author of the award-winning 'Six Minutes in Berlin: Broadcast Spectacle and Rowing Gold at the Nazi Olympics'. We discuss the significance of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games as a sport and media event, the role of the Games in commentary and technological innovation, and the unique power of radio to address national audiences.

Adele Pavlidis from Griffith University in Brisbane discusses roller derby and why it matters as a site for both feminist politics and the politics of sport. In a discussion that travels from Australia to China, Lebanon and then back again, we also discuss the body, affect, and the significance of women's contact sports.

This episode sees feminist media scholar, Jennifer McClearen, share her research insights into gender, mixed martial arts, and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Our conversation outlines the complex intersections between fighting, skill, violence and the body, the UFC's operation as a transmedia sport empire, and the significance of Ronda Rousey’s celebrity. Other topics discussed include the function of branded difference, labour relations in the UFC, and the queering of loss by trans athletes.

Younghan Cho from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul reflects on the 2018 Winter Olympics and Paralympics in Pyeongchang. We discuss relations between South and North Korea, the combined Olympic women’s ice hockey team that represented Korea, the role of sport in Korean history, and baseball. Younghan also outlines the importance of ‘inter-Asian emotions’ given that the 2018, 2020 and 2022 Games are hosted by cities across the East Asian region.

Episode 28 of the Media Sport Podcast Series features sports sociologist and cultural studies scholar, Ben Carrington. In a particularly rich conversation, we discuss race, class, Marx and the resurgence of activism in US sport. We also chat about the experience of living on both sides of the Atlantic, the legacy of Stuart Hall, and his must-read essay, 'Living the Crisis Through Ten Moments'.

Episode 27 of the Media Sport Podcast Series sees leading media and cultural studies scholar, Toby Miller, discuss his latest book, Greenwashing Sport. In explaining the relationship between sport and the environment, he highlights the ways in which professional sports are complicit in global environmental crises and climate change. Particular attention is paid to the examples of motor-racing, football and the Olympics, as well as environmental activism, the notion of a social licence to operate, and the catch-cry of sustainability.

Episode 26 of the Media Sport Podcast Series features feminist media and sociology scholar, Kim Toffoletti (@ktoffa), discussing the crucial intersections between sport, transnational feminism and female fan practices. She also shares her insights on violence against women by sportsmen, differing notions of living a feminist life and the pride of throwing like a girl.

This episode features a leading international figure in the sociology of sport, John Horne. We discuss his efforts to globalise sport studies, football in East Asia, and the contested legacies of mega-events such as the London 2012 Olympics. Our chat finishes with a fascinating reflection on the importance of disappointment in sport.

The Series is back in 2017 with a fascinating discussion about the relationship between women, gender and sport in Japan. I am joined by Robin Kietlinski, the author of 'Japanese Women and Sport: Beyond Baseball and Sumo'. We discuss the history of women's sport, the challenges of linguistic and cultural translation, and the significance of the upcoming 2020 Olympics and Paralympics in Tokyo.

In the final episode of 2016, Jimmy Sanderson (@Jimmy_Sanderson) from Arizona State University outlines the changing features of the social media landscape. We discuss the rise of Snapchat, Twitter and its discontents, and the pressing need to examine family communication in the context of sports. We also speak about the spectacle of the Little League World Series and what it says about the state of youth sports.

Speaking via Skype, leading games studies scholar, T.L. Taylor (@ybika) from MIT Game Lab, explains why eSports matter in terms of social inclusion (the AnyKey Initiative – http://www.anykey.org/), fandom, and the rise of live streaming. We also discuss the history of eSports and their complicated relationship with other types of sporting competition.

In a wide-ranging discussion, leading digital media scholar and keen surfer, Mark Andrejevic (@MarkAndrejevic), explains the logic of drones and their relationship to automation, sensors, data and power. We also discuss journalism, post-truth politics, the World Surf League and the appeal of surfing as a pastime.

Recorded in the lead-up to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, this episode features a discussion with leading sport communication and Olympic media scholar, Andy Billings, from the University of Alabama. He shares his insights on the power of the Olympic Games as a television and media event, and its intersections with nationalism and race. We also discuss the relationship between sport and social change, and the growth of the fantasy sport industry in the US.

As the UEFA Euro 2016 football championships take place, Tom Evens (@EvensTom) from Ghent University in Belgium outlines the economic power of television and the effects of market liberalisation across Europe. He also shares his insights about the weakening of the public service television sector, informal media economies, and the unique features of Belgian media.

Canadian researcher, activist and athlete Danielle Peers speaks via Skype about the Paralympics, disability sport, critical disability studies, and crip and queer theory. In a discussion that ranges far and wide, we speak about ableism, art, and the politics of Paralympic disability classification systems.

Colin Agur (@colinagur) from Yale University speaks via Skype about the relationship between mobile phones, second order networks, gambling and cricket in India. We also discuss the unanticipated outcomes of mobile network development, The Great Indian Phone Book, and the Delhi rape case.

This episode presents a special hour-long chat with one of the world's preeminent figures in the study of sport and media. In a wide-ranging discussion, David Rowe offers his insights into the state-of-the-field, his intellectual development during the Thatcher era, Cohen's Folk Devils and Moral Panics, the sociology of sport, technophilia, and the continuing significance of the media sport cultural complex.

Speaking via Skype from Recife in Brazil, Ana Vimieiro (http://anavimieiro.com/) discusses far-reaching transformations in Brazilian professional football and fan media practices. Issues covered include the 2014 FIFA World Cup, politics, television coverage, female fandom, and the excitement of Inferno Alvinegro!

Sport historians Murray Phillips and Gary Osmond from the University of Queensland join me for the final episode of 2015. Our three way chat examines their new book, Sport History in the Digital Era, the impact of the digital humanities, the changing character of teaching, the uses of geo-mapping software, and Wikipedia.

Steve Redhead from Charles Sturt University joins me to discuss his latest book, Football and Accelerated Culture: This Modern Sporting Life. In a wide-ranging chat, we speak about his career, the politics of popular culture, the post-GFC cultural condition, football hooliganism, and the rise of physical cultural studies.

Kirsten Frandsen from the Department of Media and Journalism Studies at Aarhus University discusses media and sport in Denmark and Scandinavia. Topics covered include the study of mediatisation, public service media, and the challenges of conducting bilingual research.

In this episode we hear from another new voice in media sport research. PhD researcher and professional sports journalist, Norman Li, speaks about the state of sports media, journalism and social media in China. We also cover the FIFA Women's World Cup, the Chinese newspaper market, nationalism, and the Asian Games.

Two leading international figures in mobile media and communications studies, Gerard Goggin and Larissa Hjorth, discuss the state of the field, Asian media cultures, mobile gaming and e-sports. Attention also turns to disability, the Paralympics and Oscar Pistorius.

In this episode we hear from a new voice in media sport research. Speaking via Skype, Portia Vann from the Social Media Research Group at the Queensland University of Technology discusses Twitter, the 2015 Asian Cup, and netball in Australia and New Zealand. We also chat about social media teams for major events, multilingual social networking, and software-assisted analysis.

Thomas Horky from Macromedia University of Applied Sciences in Hamburg chats about sports journalism, the International Press Sports Survey, and social media and the news. We also cover the FIFA World Cup, the Bundesliga & the media machine surrounding Ronaldo.

Thomas Oates discusses the NFL, the Super Bowl, mythic spectacle, sports video games, gender and neo-liberalism. Also listen in for why the O'Bannon vs the NCAA legal dispute matters for US college sports and the video game industry.

An hour-long discussion with a distinguished figure in sports media and communication research. Larry Wenner discusses the history of the field, sports dirt, George Gerbner, fallen heroes, gendered inequality, and the enduring value of critical analysis.

Holly Thorpe from the Department of Sport and Leisure Studies at the University of Waikato in New Zealand talks about action sports, mobilities, the transnational imaginary, digital commemoration, GoPros, YouTube, parkour on the Gaza Strip, and Red Bull space jumps!

Professor Deborah Lupton from the News and Media Research Centre at the University of Canberra discusses the rise of the quantified self movement, self-tracking cultures, physical education in schools, the body, surveillance and big data.

Rowan Wilken from the Swinburne Institute for Social Research talks about the significance of locative media, the evolution of Foursquare, A-League football, and the growing importance of mobile apps in sports media practices and consumption.

Speaking via Skype, Professor Raymond Boyle from the Centre for Cultural Policy Research at the University of Glasgow discusses the 2014 Commonwealth Games, the relationship between the Games and the Scottish independence referendum, the use of smartphones and social media in the conduct of major sports events, and copyright and football.

Professor Andy Miah from the Creative Futures Institute joins me via Skype from Nanjing in China to speak about Google Glass, the Youth Olympics, bio-ethics, mobile media, and drones.

A short introduction that explains the purpose and content of the Media Sport Podcast Series. This semi-regular series of informal chats will feature approximately 24 episodes over the next three-and-a-half years. It will be of interest to scholars, students and anyone else interested in understanding how and why sport, digital media, mobile technologies and telecommunications matter in an age of global media.